btjell



W. H. BUELL.

PRIMING CHARGE.

APPLICATION FILEDAUG-3I. 1917.

Patented July 1, 1919.

M I By W I Arron/um".

UNITED STATES PAT WE IAM 1r. BUELL, or NEW l FF E HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, Assieivon 'TOE. I. ronr 1m moons AND comrm, or WILMINGTON, ELAWARE, A CORPORATION or DE-LA:

WARE.

To all whom it concm Be it known that I, Wrnnnii'i H. Bmim, of New Haven, in thecounty of New'Haven', and in the State of Connecticut, have invented a certain new'and useful Imp-rovement in Priming Charges; and do hereby declare that'the following is a full, clear,

and exact description thereof...

My invention relates particularly to priming charges for igniting powders of various kinds, including smokeless and black powders, especially as used in connection with center-fire and rim-fire ammunition, as, for

1 example, small arms ammunition.

The object of my invention is to provide a primer which is specially suited for use 3 in igniting the types ofpowders employed in firearms, and more particularly small arms.

Another object of my invention is to provide a priming charge ofi such a nature that,

as a result of the combustion, there is an alkaline residueileft, which tends to neutralize the acid residues in the gases produced by' the explosives present, thus preventing their deleterious-action upon the bores of firearms A further object is to provide a'priming charge containing an alkali-metal or an alkaline-earth metal salt of tri-nitro-resorci- 11-01, which is sometimes known as styphnic acid.or T.- N. R.

A further object is-to provide a priming charge which, owing to the presence of the salt of tri-nitro-resorcinol, which contains a very large percentageof oxygen, has the ef-- fect of producing 'a greater degree of heat of com-bustion, so as to bring about a complete and progressive ignition of the powder in the cartridge, and so as to complete the combustion within the length of the bore of the firearm, and thus obviate variations in Jballisti'cs, muzzle flashes, etc.-

A further object is, by the use of such salts, to provide priming charges which explode progressively, rather than by detona-' 'tion, as in the case of mercury ful-minate.

A further object is to provide priming charges which, by reason of theuse of such salts, obviate the possibility of the amalgamation of mercury with thebra ss of the cartridge shell and other adjacent parts, which takes place when priming charges containing fulminate of mercury are used.

Specification of Letters Yatent.

' PRIMING CHARGE, I

-My invention is capable of being carried pose of illustration, I

In general, such salts of tri-nitro-resorcinol may be prepared .by simple 'neutraliza tion of the alkali metal hydroxid. or 'car- Patented July 1,1919. Application filed August 31, 1917. Serial No. 189,115.

bonate by tri-nitro resorcin-ol in a hot Y aqueous SOlIItIOII-Of theformer, with subsequent cooling and precipitation. Where it is desired to produce a barium salt of tri-nitroresorclnol, this may be prepared by precipitation from eithera hot or a cold strong 7 aqueous solution containing a mineral acid salt of. barium, as, for example, barium .chlorid,-to which is added an alkali-metal salt of tri-nitro-resorcinol, in the presence of a weak organic acid. a

Whilefipriming-charges may be made in many di erent ways in accordance with my invention, I will describe in detail hereinafter certain examplesof' priming charges madeinxaccordance with my invention;

-"A primlng charge made in accordance with my inventiommay be comprised of an alkali-metal or an alkaline-earth metal salt of tri-nitro-resorcinol," as, for example, the

barium salt, which may be referred to generically as. a tri-nitro-resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal, either alone or mixed with an oxidizing agent and a fuel, or, if desired, it may be used when mixed with a metallic sulfo-cyanate, as, for example, lead sulfo-cy-anataan oxidizingxag'ent and a fuel, 'or 'it may be used when mixed with a heavy metal'salt of 'tri-nitro-resorcinol, as, for example,'a lead salt, an oxidizing, agent, a fuel',

andmetallic sulfo-cya-nate. v

Forexample, I may, use for this purpose a composition comprising Another composition which I may use would be the following Antimony sulfid 1'3 Parts by weight.

1 Potassium tri-nitro-resorcinate or barium tri-nitro-resorciinate 15 ,P'otassium chlorate 50 Antimony sulfid l 35 Partsby Another composition which I -may use would be the following Parts by weight.

Potassium tri-nitro-resorcinate 10 Lead tri-nitro-resorcinateui 25 "Potassium chlorate 35 Antimony sulfid 10 Lead suli'o-cyanate It will be understood, however, that the proportions of the ingredients may be chan'ged'to a considerable degree as desired and so as to take into account the variations in the strengths of the ingredients as obtained in the trade.

Furthermore, in the place of the lead sulfo-cyanate, other sulfo-cyanates may be used, as, for example, the sulfo-cyanate of copper.

Again, in place of the potassium Chlorate, some other oxidizing agent may be used, as, for example, potassium perchlorate or potassium nitrate, or chlorate of barium, or per- I chlorate of barium, or peroxid of barium.

If desired, further ingredients may be added to any of the compositions, as, for example, powdered glass, a substance which tends to make the mixture more sensitive.

While priming charges of this character are capable of being used in many different Ways and may be used in containers of many different types, I have shown only certain types of primers containing. such charges in the accompanying drawings, in which" Figure 1 shows a primer made in accordance with my invention and adapted to be applied to center-fire ammunition.

Fig. 2 shows a rim-fire shell provided with a charge of this character.

- or tragacanth. An anvil serted in the cup. 4

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the in cross-section in Fig. 1.

'In the drawings, referring particularly to Fig. 1, I have shown a primer cup 1, in which a charge 2 of the priming composition has been seated lby moistening it with a solution of gum, as, for example gum arabic or tragacanth, and then introduced primer shown into the cup- 1 by heavy pressure. There after the charge may be covered with a layer 3 of paper or tinfoilor a thin film of collodion or gum, as, for example gum arabic 4 may-then be in- As shown in Fig. 2, a; rim-fire shell 5 may be provided with a priming charge 6 by giving the priming charge a coating of the gum solution aJbove referred to in connection with Fig. 1 and'then seating it in the annular rim of the shell by centrifugal force. The

priming charge may then be covered by a layer 7 of collodion or gum, as, for example,

gum arabic or tragacanth;

Priming charges made ,in this manner have not only the characteristics above re-' ferred to, but are homogeneous in character, and produce a uniform flame without an excess of pressure, but having the proper. ve-

locity and the intensity of heat to ignite the main charge before imparting to it any appreciable motion before ignition. Furthermore, the effect is to produce the maximumpressure within the breech of the firearm and not to delay the ignition until the charge is near the muzzle of the barrel, where the barrel is least adapted to withstand high pressure.

While I have described my invention above in detail, I wish it to be understood that many changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim I 1. A priming charge consisting of a inix- I ture one of the constituents of which is a tri-nitro resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal. I I

.2. A priuiing charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of barium.

3. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal and an oxidizing agent.

fl. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinateof and anoxidizing agent.'

5. A priming charge containing a trini-tro-resorcinate'. of an alkali-forming metal and potassium chlorate.

6. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of barium and potassium chlorate.

7 A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal,

an oxidizing agent, and a fuel.

8. A priming charge containing a, trinitro-resorcinate of barium, an oxidizing agent, and a fuel. v 9. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal, an oxidizing agent, and antimony sulfid.

agent, afuel and a metallic sulfo-cyanate.

13. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of an alkali forming metal, an oxidizing agent, a .fuel, and lead sulfo-. cyanate.

14. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of barium, an oxidlzing agent, a fuel, and lead sulfo-cyanate.

15. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal,

an oxidizing agent, a fuel, a metallic sulfocyanate, and a heavy metal tri-nitro-resorcinate.

16. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resorcinate of barium, an oxidizing agent, a fuel, a metallic s'ulfb-cyanate, and a heavy metal tri-nitro-resorcinate.

'17. A priming charge containing a trinitno-resorcinate of an alkali-forming metal,

an oxidizing agent, a fuel, a metallic sulfocyanate, and lead tri-nitro-resorcinate.

18. A priming charge containing a trinitro-resoroinate of barium an oxidizing agent, a fuel, a metallic sulio-cyanate, and

.lead tri-nitro-resorcinate.

- WILLIAM H. BUELL.

Witnesses:

P. E. STRICKLAND, H. J. HAWKE, Jr. 

